View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Siberian Federal University Digital Repository УДК 261.7 DO MUSLIME HOLIDAYS HAVE TO BE OFFICIALLY LEGALIZED IN GERMAN? Петроченко Ю. Е., научный руководитель канд . культурологи Рыжова С. В. Сибирский федеральный университет About 4 million Muslims live in Germany, at least in Internet-sites we can see this figure. But really from 10 to 11 million Muslims live in Germany. “Does Islam belong to Germany?” – this is one of the most important questions, in which the Christian and Islamic inhabitants of Germany are interested. If the answer stands, "yes", does it act then around the right of the Muslims on professional exemption on her religious holidays? In my country live more than 8 million Muslims what forms 6% in the population. The number of the Muslims in Germany forms 4.5 – 5.2% in the population. From them are from one million to 1.8 millions German citizens. A part of them is converted to Islam. If is the speech of German citizens, one should think of the tolerance. The Christians have theirs legalized religious holidays whether then should the legalized Islamic holidays put in force and could Muslims be released on these days professionally? Islam is a monotheistic and Abrahamic religion articulated by the Qur'an , a book considered by its adherents to be the verbatim word of God (Arabic – Allah) and by the teachings and normative example of Muhammad , considered by them to be the last prophet of God . An adherent of Islam is called a Muslim . Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable and the purpose of existence is to worship God. Islam is a monotheistische religion which was donated in the early 7th century in Arabia by the prophet Mohammed. With 1.57 milliard followers it is after the Christianity (approx. 2.26 milliard followers) today the second largest world religion. In Germany Islam is marked on account of the population development mainly in Turkish. In 2008 about 63% of the Muslims living in Germany had a Turkish migration background what is due to the recruitment of working migrants, called at that time foreign worker, from Turkey in the 60s and 70s. Since 2006 Muslims and non-Muslims aim in the German Islam conference at reaching a religious-political and society-political integration of the Muslim population in Germany. Islam, after the explanations of his followers, pursues the aim to form the virtuous personality, the healthy family and the harmonious society. The Islamic and Christian holidays differ. Islamic holidays hang together primarily with the life of the Islamic prophet Mohammed and particular importance of the Koran. There are two official holidays in Islam: Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha . Eid Al-Fitr is celebrated at the end of Ramadan (a month of fasting), and Muslims usually give zakat (charity) on the occasion. Eid Al-Adha is celebrated on the 10th day of Dhu al-Hijjah and lasts for four days, during which Muslims usually sacrifice an animal and distribute its meat among family, friends, and the poor. Both holidays occur on dates in the Islamic (Hijri) calendar , which is lunar, and thus their dates in the Gregorian calendar , which is solar, change each year. The Gregorian calendar is based on the 1 orbital period of the Earth's revolution around the Sun, approximately 365 ⁄4 days, while the Islamic calendar is based on the synodic period of the Moon's revolution around the Earth, approximately 1 29 ⁄2 days. The Islamic calendar alternates months of 29 and 30 days (which begin with the new moon). Twelve of these months constitute an Islamic year, which is 11 days shorter than the Gregorian year. Ramadan is the month in which Muslims must fast from dawn to sunset. This is meant to feel how the poor people are without food or water. In addition, Muslims fast by denying themselves both food and drink. This, they believe in turn allows for the nourishment of the soul. In addition, there are culture-specific beliefs regarding the watching of television, listening to music, and the perusal of any secular vice that does not in some way enhance spirituality. Friday is for Muslims a similarly important weekday like Sunday for Christians and the Sabbath for Jews. Indeed, Friday is not valid in Islamic countries as a holiday, only in Saudi Arabia the shops remain closed half a day. The weekday Friday is known in Islam also as "Yaum al- Dschum ʿa" what means „day of the meeting“. The Friday prayer (Sal āt al-Dschum) is a communal prayer which Muslims do every Friday early in the afternoon together. Therefore, the bigger mosques in which this prayer takes place are called also Friday mosques. For men the common prayer is obliging on Friday, it is worth for women as welcome. The Friday prayer distinguishes itself by the fact that before the real prayer (Sal āt) a sermon (Chutba) by a preacher (Ch ātib, this is as a rule the imam of the mosque) is held. Jumu'ah ( "Friday prayer") is a congregational prayer that Muslims hold every Friday, just after noon in the place of dhuhr. Muslims pray ordinarily five times each day according to the sun's sky path regardless of clock time. Eid al-Fitr ("Festival of breaking of the fast"), also called Feast of Breaking the Fast, the Sugar Feast, Bayram (Bajram), the Sweet Festival and the Lesser Eid, is an important religious holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting (sawm). The religious Eid is a single day and Muslims are not permitted to fast on that day. The holiday celebrates the conclusion of the 29 or 30 days of dawn-to-sunset fasting during the entire month of Ramadan. The day of Eid, therefore, falls on the first day of the month of Shawwal. This is a day when Muslims around the world show a common goal of unity. The date for the start of any lunar Hijri month varies based on the observation of new moon by local religious authorities, so the exact day of celebration varies by locality. However, in most countries, it is generally celebrated on the same day as Saudi Arabia. The Eid al-Adha or Festival of the sacrifice is the highest Islamic is the second of two religious holidays celebrated by Muslims worldwide each year and is committed about 70 days after the fasting break. It is celebrated in recollection of the prophet Abraham, when to sacrifice his son Isaak he tried as a proof of his loyalty to Allah. Muslims sacrifice like Abraham an animal (for usual a cow or a sheep) to owe God for the rescue of the life of Ismail. The meat of the killed animal is distributed in three same parts to the sacrificing, to his poor relatives and to destitute without respect of her religion, race or nationality. As with the Eid al-Adha the Muslims meet in the morning of the first day for the ritual festival prayer. The holiday lasts four days. In Germany there are no legal Islamic holidays; indeed, it is regulated that Muslim schoolchildren must not come on her holidays like the Eid al-Fitr or the Eid al-Adha to the school – in the teacher calendars Muslim holidays are also put down. Besides, the chairperson the central advice of the Muslims Aiman Mazyek demands to take up Islamic holidays officially as "German holidays" – what should not indicate, however to make this in general school-free and work-free days. This is looked by the chairperson of the Turkish municipality in Germany (TGD) Kenan Kolat as desirable: on important Muslim days all children should freely have. Nowadays the Muslim children in Berlin, Hamburg and Baden-Baden may on the most important Islamic holidays the school do not visit. The concrete demand after at least one single free Islamic day, also for non- Muslim children, bumped into criticism of sides of the central advice of the Muslims; however, the central advice of the Jews felt the proposal as welcome and suggested in the course of that also a Jewish work-free holiday. Already in 2004 the Green politician Hans-Christian Ströbele in the Bundestag stimulated a debate on a Muslim holiday. However, there the proposal bumped into strong refusal. How would pass away Internet sites report, delivers the central advice of the Muslims a speech to court in Berlin for introduction of legalized Islamic holidays in the German. According to the opinion from the central Presidence of the Council end Aiman Mazyek, one would stress meet in the fasting month Ramadan and in the time of the Islamic sacrificial party the tolerance in society. However, the question of the official professional exemption stands sharp. For example, is Wolfgang Bosbach, CDU- inside politician, against legalized Islamic holidays. He is persuaded that Germany isn’t Islamic country. Many Germans agree with this view. Some from those are not against Islamic holidays, but they are against the fact that the Muslims have vacation protecting of their Hoiday. Mr. Bosbach and many other Germans believe, that her history quite clearly on a Christian past back white ones. Vice versa observes Hamburg a right on professional exemption on religious Islamic holidays. Burgomaster Olaf Scholz has announced, Muslim holidays get the same status, how not-legalized Christian church holidays. In the end emport to itself CDU-legal expert Patrick Sensburg that his non-Christian citizen in the Good Friday have party events.